The Amazing Spider-Man 2
Now playing at Scotiabank Theatre
Spider-Man is a crybaby.
As we saw in the first Amazing Spider-Man film (and umpteenth reboot), Andrew Garfield brings a new level of angst to the character of Peter Parker. His eyes well up almost as often as he suits up. This time around he spends a lot of time in his room, moodily musing about his abandonment issues and his on-again-off-again love affair with Gwen Stacey (Emma Stone).
You either like it, or you hate it.
While Marvel sticklers may wince at the amount of kissing going on, there’s no doubt that the popular Stone demands a lot of screen time, particularly after her epic airband competition with Jimmy Fallon earlier this week: guys love her, girls want to be her.
And all that soul-searching — a hallmark of the superhero genre, after all — is relevant in a plot wherein Peter Parker learns the truth about his parents, struggles with guilt and crises of loyalty, all while trying to figure out his next move after high school.
Flashbacks to Peter’s past give us the complete story of what caused the Parkers (Campbell Scott, Embeth Davitz) to leave their young son with Aunt May (Sally Field). The reappearance of childhood friend Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan) provides a moral quandary for Peter: does he save his friend and risk the hijacking of the Spidey serum? We know the answer: Harry’s severe haircut is our first hint that he’ll choose the bad-guy path. And a chance encounter with a fan called Max (Jamie Foxx) is an open-and-shut stalking case until a jobsite accident turns Max into Electro, one of the most formidable foes Spider-Man has ever faced.
It’s notable that neither of these guys particularly wants to be a villain: if you had given Electro a time-out in the corner, chances are you could’ve prevented the destruction of Times Square. There’s another bad dude, Paul Giamatti as Rhino: don’t you love it when Oscar nominees get to play with body armor and bad Russian accents?
All this is too much for Gwen, who is fed up with Peter’s crushing guilt over her dad’s death, not to mention having to share him with all of New York City. She breaks up with Peter and contemplates university life in England.
It may be a stretch to ask the 30-year-old Garfield to play a high school senior, but his lankiness helps. Filmmakers wisely keep Peter Parker’s boyish charm and humour intact and he still has moments of awkwardness with his web devices, which suits his inexperience. The rapport between real-life adorable couple Garfield and Stone is palpable, and makes the love story a centerpiece of the film, no mean feat with all that gravity-defying web-slinging going on.
The 3D Imax upcharge is worth it here, you need it for the ear-splitting electrical surges and aerial battles. We don’t just see Spidey in the opening scene, we ride along with him (if you get motion sick, a few scenes will have you fumbling for the armrest). Visual effects are rich, punchy, generally high quality and detailed: we can even see the tread on Spider-Man’s boot (did it say Nike? I forgot to look). Music by Hans Zimmer, Pharell, Johnny Marr and others completes the package.
Speaking of which, product placement is part of the package these days, so expect a few messages from the U.S. Postal Service (which could use the PR) and Sony, which owns the franchise. And don’t be surprised if you have a sudden hankering for Dunkin Donuts after watching the trailer.
